


Tell Me, Is It Really Love?

by DavidRoseBrewer



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Friends to Lovers, It's the 1990s, Light Smut, M/M, boys being dumb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 00:27:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29341296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DavidRoseBrewer/pseuds/DavidRoseBrewer
Summary: “So ground rules… we don’t tell Reggie, no hickeys where they can be seen, and we only do stuff when he’s not here. Deal?” Alex continued.“Deal.”ORLuke and Alex decide to explore their feelings for each other. How long can they keep it from Reggie though?
Relationships: Alex Mercer & Luke Patterson & Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex Mercer & Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex Mercer/Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Luke Patterson & Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 103
Collections: Kelly's Picks





	Tell Me, Is It Really Love?

**Author's Note:**

> Someone requested a part two to my "The Wingman" fic where Reggie finds out about Alex and Luke. So here we are; 9000 odd words later.
> 
> You probably expected this to just be Reggie arriving in the morning but my brain really ran away with me on this one. 
> 
> You don't have to have read The Wingman to read this one, it should still make sense on its own. There are one or two small callbacks but nothing major. In case you haven't read the other one, the main thing you need to know is the boys are 21, it's set in the 90s and they share an apartment together.
> 
> There's some sex stuff mentioned/described in light detail but it's not explicit. 
> 
> As ever, this has been proofread but not beta'd so please ignore any mistakes. 
> 
> [Also, I'm not sure it's clear but just for reference, they have a kitchen/living room combo so it's open plan]

Luke felt weird when he woke up. It took a few seconds for him to realise that it was because he was in a bed that wasn’t his own. That hadn’t happened in a while. There was no sunlight glaring in his eyes and the mattress underneath him wasn’t lumpy. There weren’t any springs poking him in the back either. He turned his head to the side and the sight of Alex lying next to him brought all of the previous night rushing back.

It had all started with the douchebag at the bar. Luke had been happy for his friend. If anyone deserved to be flirted with, it was Alex. So Luke had agreed with Reggie that the two of them would leave him alone for the time being. That was all going fine until Reggie had appeared next to Luke at the bar, asking if he could go help Alex as the blond looked like he wanted to be rescued. Reggie said he would have done it himself but he liked his chances with the girl he’d been talking to all night. Luke had agreed in a heartbeat, swallowing the rest of his drink before heading in Alex’s direction.

He hadn’t planned the fake boyfriend act, let alone kissing him. But something about the way the guy was looking at Alex made Luke feel protective and… jealous? If anyone got to kiss Alex, it should be him. He’d only meant to make it a quick kiss, to scare the guy off, but then Alex started kissing him back and Luke forgot about everything and everyone else. 

Luke had spent the rest of the night thinking about the kiss, trying to act like it hadn’t shifted something inside of him. In the past, he had sometimes caught himself staring at Alex for a bit longer than was normal, and he’d occasionally felt a flutter in his chest when the drummer smiled at him. He’d always written those off, choosing not to pull at that particular thread. He didn’t want to make things awkward or jeopardise their friendship. 

But drunk Luke had very much acted on his repressed feelings, and it was like he’d opened the dam, or pulled out the final block of a Jenga tower. Every time he looked at Alex, he wanted to kiss him again. It had been over all too quickly and he had to spend the rest of the night pretending like he was fine. 

Except Luke wasn’t very good at pretending or holding back, especially when he had been drinking. He was a ‘seize the moment’ type, going after whatever he wanted just because he wanted it. It had only taken until they got home for him to come clean about his motivations and for him to fall into bed with Alex, relieved that the feelings weren’t entirely one-sided.

That brought him to now, waking up in Alex’s bed. His head was pounding but he chose to ignore that in favour of staying exactly where he was for as long as possible. Luke cuddled in closer, pressing a kiss to Alex’s shoulder as he began to stir.

“Morning.” Luke smiled. Alex blinked at him, confusion written on his face as he looked at Luke.

“So guess I didn’t dream that, huh?” Alex mumbled, rubbing at his eyes as he woke up.

“No, not a dream,” Luke confirmed, a smile playing on his lips as he thought about everything they’d done in this very bed last night. He’d never had a better blowjob than the one Alex had given him. 

“What are we doing, Luke?” Alex asked. 

It was way too early in the morning for such a loaded question, but Luke knew that was just who Alex was - he needed to know where he stood with people so he didn’t end up worrying about it more.

“Well do you want more of this?” Luke asked playfully, gesturing to his body as he shimmied it at Alex.

Alex rolled his eyes at him but nevertheless nodded in response. 

“Great. Then we’re just two friends seeing where this thing goes, alright?” 

“Okay.” Alex nodded slowly. “As long as I don’t lose you as a friend because of this.” 

“I pinky swear I’m not going anywhere,” Luke replied sincerely, holding out his hand with his little finger outstretched.

Luke loved the small smile that was creeping across Alex’s face as he took Luke’s finger with his own. It was a shy smile and a very cute one at that.

He leaned in closer, trying to seal their new deal with a kiss only for Alex to slide backwards away from him.

“Morning breath,” Alex explained.

“Don’t care,” Luke replied simply, sliding right after Alex. The blond gasped as Luke grabbed him, struggling to get free of his grip. Luke covered Alex’s face in kisses before finally finding his lips. “Besides, Reggie will be home soon and I don’t wanna share.” He added.

“Shit, Reggie.” 

“I can’t believe you’re thinking about another guy already.” Luke dropped his jaw in faux-offence. 

“No, you idiot.” Alex sighed, finally getting free of Luke’s grasp and pushing him back to the other side of the bed.

“What are we going to tell him? About this?” Alex asked, his hands gesturing between the two of them. “Do we have to tell him?”

“It’s up to you.” Luke shrugged. He didn’t mind if Reggie knew or not. He was sure it’d probably come as a shock that Luke was into boys too. It wasn’t like Luke had given any previous indication that was the case. But he wasn’t ashamed of being into Alex or being with him.

“Can we not? Just for the moment.” Alex replied after a few minutes of thought. “If this doesn’t work out then I don’t want to have ruined the group dynamic for nothing. So we only tell him if this turns out to be real, okay?”

Luke nodded in agreement. This was already the most real thing he’d ever had, but that seemed like a lot to drop on a hungover and vulnerable Alex first thing in the morning.

“So ground rules… we don’t tell Reggie, no hickeys where they can be seen, and we only do stuff when he’s not here. Deal?” Alex continued.

“Deal.” 

**-x-**

The first week of their new arrangement was torture. It felt like Reggie never left the house, although that was probably just Luke’s hormones exaggerating. He just wanted to touch Alex all the time but found himself limited by Reggie’s presence and their rule not to do anything when the bassist was around.

He loved Reggie, but Luke still found himself looking forward to the days when Reggie had a shift at work. He worked at a fast-food restaurant a few miles away. It wasn’t a long term job, just something to help pay the bills whilst they waited for the band to take off enough for them to be full-time musicians. Luke himself had a job at a music store whilst Alex was clever enough to make some money tutoring kids for their exams.

It was Thursday night and the three of them were watching a film together. Reggie was on the armchair, Alex stretched out on the couch with Luke sitting on the floor in front of him. Luke had tipped his head back enough for Alex to play with his hair without Reggie catching on. They had all the lights off anyway so it would have been hard for him to see exactly what was going on, even if it was just as innocuous as Alex running his fingers through Luke’s hair. 

They were half-way through the film when their phone rang. Reggie was the one who went to answer it since he was the closest. Luke tried to steal a kiss from Alex whilst Reggie was out of the room, rolling his eyes when Alex pushed him away. He didn’t like these rules, but he suspected he’d be able to get Alex to bend on them eventually. Not to brag, but he could talk most people into anything with his infectious charm, his puppy dog eyes and a flash of his smile. 

“That was work, apparently Sophie called in sick so they want me to go in to help cover,” Reggie explained as he reappeared in the living room. 

_ “That sucks can’t someone else do it?-” _

_ “Oh well if they need you, plus you get more money-” _

Alex and Luke answered at the same time, Luke’s answer earning him a whack on the head and a glare from Alex. 

“I’m just saying, if you want that new bass then every shift helps, right?” Luke shrugged. 

“But you still need time to relax,” Alex countered. “So if you don’t want to go then just stay here and hang out with us.”

“Luke’s got a point, I do want that bass.” Reggie nodded. “Plus there’s that girl, Kayla. I wanna ask her out so I need money for that. Guess I’m gonna go then, you guys can finish the movie without me.”

Luke had to bite his lip to hide the smirk that was threatening to form. He had a good feeling that the very last thing he and Alex would be doing would be watching the rest of the movie. He watched as Reggie left to go get ready for work, turning back to Alex.

“You’re a terrible person,” Alex commented as Luke caught his eye. “Sending poor Reg off to work just so we can fool around.”

“Are you complaining?” Luke challenged.

“No,” Alex laughed. “I just want the record to reflect that I was happy for Reggie to stay here and enjoy his evening with his friends instead of working.” 

“I just want you to enjoy  _ your  _ evening.” Luke teased, reaching out to place his hand on Alex’s knee. He gave it a quick squeeze before beginning to trail his fingers up Alex’s inner thigh. His hand was quickly swatted away as Reggie’s footsteps began to echo back down the hallway.

“Alex, my car was making a weird noise yesterday, can I borrow yours?” Reggie asked, now dressed in his uniform.

“Sure.” Alex nodded, digging around in his pocket for the keys.

“Don’t worry about it, I’ve got your spare pair.” Reggie shrugged, holding up the other keys in his hand. 

“Oh okay, yeah that’s fine.” 

“See you later guys.” Reggie smiled at them before heading for the door. The sound of the door opening and closing seemed to echo through the apartment. Neither Alex nor Luke moved for a moment, waiting to see if Reggie was going to come back. Reggie could be forgetful and often doubled back to get his name badge or his wallet.

So for a few minutes, the only sound in the apartment was the television, the movie still playing. Luke’s eyes may have been trained on the screen but he certainly wasn’t watching anymore. He forced himself to wait another few minutes but there was no sign of Reggie. Once he heard the familiar sound of Alex’s car’s engine spluttering into life and driving away, he considered the coast clear.

Luke scrambled off the floor and quickly joined Alex on the couch. He settled in between Alex’s legs, immediately finding Alex’s lips with his own. One hand rested on Alex’s waist, the other losing itself in his soft blond hair. Luke had been thrilled to find out that Alex was just as good a kisser as he remembered. If anything, it felt even better doing it sober. 

He had initially been nervous about his lack of experience when it came to pleasing guys, but it turned out that being with Alex just felt easy. He found that his instincts took over. Plus Alex wasn’t shy about letting him know what he did and didn’t like, which helped him out. Luke’s hands made quick work of Alex’s shirt before he began covering his neck and chest in kisses. 

Eventually, they moved from the couch to Alex’s room, Alex mumbling about not doing anything in communal areas. That was a rule that had been implemented when they first moved in together. It was Alex’s idea. He hadn’t liked the idea of walking in on either Luke or Reggie with a girl or risking inadvertently touching something he shouldn’t afterwards. Luke had broken that rule several times though, and he knew Reggie had too. But they’d managed to keep it from Alex, not wanting to incur his wrath or earn a lecture on respect.

But frankly Luke didn’t care where they ended up as long as he got to keep touching and kissing Alex. 

**-x-**

It was Tuesday evening and Reggie had gone to work, which meant that it took very little coaxing for Luke to get Alex on-board with spending the evening in bed.

The clothes had come off quickly, the two of them jumping straight back into where they had left off exploring each other’s bodies. Luke was determined to kiss every inch of Alex’s body, even if just to learn where his favourite spots were.

He liked to think he was good at sex, he knew what things girls liked and they usually came back wanting more, which had to be a good sign. But being with Alex was a whole new experience, and he’d certainly never  _ tried  _ so hard at this before. He’d already started mentally cataloguing what made Alex moan the loudest, what made his name fall from Alex’s lips and what tipped him over the edge. He couldn’t wait to learn more.

So far Luke had mostly stayed within what he knew, using his hands to get Alex off. He obviously had experience with touching himself so it wasn’t totally new territory. He was keen to try more though, deciding that tonight was going to be when he tried using his mouth instead.

Alex had given him a few killer blowjobs, and Luke had been trying to somewhat pay attention to what he’d been doing before Alex inevitably made his mind go blank. It was Luke’s turn now though, and he started pressing kisses down Alex’s torso, settling in between his legs. 

Alex was already hard from their makeout session, and being able to see how much Luke had affected him, how much he had turned him on, that made Luke feel a little proud. Luke took one last glance at Alex’s eyes, revelling in the fire that burned there before he dropped down, taking as much as he could in his mouth.

It was a weird feeling at first, as he got used to having Alex in his mouth. He had to work out the best angles, the best way to use his tongue and how to keep his teeth from getting in the way. He knew he had a lot to learn but Alex still seemed to be enjoying it, which was really all that mattered.

He was just starting to get into a rhythm when he heard the sound of the front door closing.

“Guys, I’m home.” Reggie’s voice rang out, the sound of his footsteps already making its way down the hall.

“Shit.” Alex hissed. He grabbed at the duvet and blanket, flinging them over Luke. “Stay quiet.” He whispered at him. He lay back on the bed, grabbing a magazine from his bedside table to try and make it look like he’d been reading before bed.

“Hey, Alex?” Reggie asked, knocking quickly on Alex’s door before opening it a second later.

“They double booked us at work so they didn’t need me anymore. Wanna watch a movie?” Reggie asked, frowning as he saw Alex in bed. “You in bed already?”

Luke could just about hear the conversation happening above the covers, trying his best to keep as still as possible, and not think about the fact his head was lying on Alex’s naked stomach, Alex's hard dick mere inches away.

“Yeah, I was going to try and get an early  _ night _ .” Alex lied, his voice catching as Luke’s willpower failed him and he couldn’t help but touch Alex teasingly under the covers.

“But you know what? A movie sounds great.” Alex smiled through gritted teeth, hitting Luke’s shoulder through the bedding. “Sorry, thought I saw something.” He added as an explanation to Reggie’s confused face.

“Okay cool!” Reggie grinned at having company. “Do you know where Luke is?”

“I think he went out,” Alex answered, trying to speed things along. “I’m sure he’ll be back soon. I’ll be out in a bit, okay Reg?” He added, hoping that was the end of the conversation.

“Sure, I’ll be in the living room.” Reggie smiled, finally turning and leaving Alex’s room. He closed the door behind him, Luke crawling out from under the covers. He took a deep breath as he emerged, finally able to breathe properly again.

“What happened to being quiet?” Alex fumed quietly. “He could have caught us. He only didn’t because he’s Reggie.” 

“I was quiet, you were the one that nearly gave us away.” Luke shrugged innocently. “Besides, I think you enjoyed the danger of it.” He whispered playfully, slipping his hand back down to its previous position.

Alex went red, slapping Luke’s hand away. “Stop, Reggie’s home now.” 

Luke pouted, watching as Alex pulled away from him entirely. The blond got out of bed and started getting dressed, hiding what was left of his erection in the waistband of his boxers. “Where are you going?” Luke asked.

“Reggie wants to watch a movie so I’m going to the living room,” Alex replied. “You’re technically out so you need to sneak out and then come back in. This,” He gestured between them. “Is to be continued later.” He whispered, leaning in to give Luke one last quick kiss before he turned and headed out of the room.

Luke couldn’t help but smile to himself as he got dressed again. It hadn’t gone entirely to plan and Reggie had inadvertently and unknowingly given both of his housemates blue balls, but Luke had still enjoyed the time he’d had with Alex.

He quietly let himself out of Alex’s room, padding as quietly as he could down the hallway. He could hear Reggie and Alex’s voices in the living room, which is hopefully where they’d stay until he got out of the apartment. Luke stopped to pick up a pair of sneakers, before easing himself out of the front door, closing it quietly behind him.

Since he was out of the apartment already, Luke figured he might as well go out and get something, to really sell the idea that he’d been out the whole time. Where would he have even gone that he was coming back empty-handed?

So Luke made his way down the stairs, walking the block or so to the local mini-market. He picked up some snacks, making sure to get extras of Alex’s favourites. With a bag full of junk food, he walked the short distance back to the apartment.

He let himself into the apartment, kicking off his sneakers by the door. With the front door closed, he entered the living room.

“Luke!” Reggie grinned at the sight of him. “We were just going to watch a movie, are you in?”

“As long as it’s not Star Wars, yeah I’m in.” Luke teased. “I bought snacks, so that’s good timing.” He added with a grin, emptying the contents of the bag onto the coffee table.

“Are those AirHeads?” Alex asked, swiping a packet off the table.

“Yeah I got them just for you, don’t say I never do anything for you.” Luke teased, throwing a playful wink in Alex’s direction. Alex gave him a warm smile in return, and that made the walk to the store and back worth it by itself. 

Luke climbed over the table, throwing himself onto the couch. By the time the movie had got underway, the three of them were all cuddled on the couch together with a blanket shared between them. 

Luke jumped slightly when halfway through the film, Alex slipped his hand into Luke’s and interlaced their fingers. A quick glance sideways showed that Reggie was fast asleep. Luke smiled at the sight before letting himself cuddle into Alex’s side, their interlocked hands hidden away underneath the safety of the blanket. 

**-x-**

“What are you doing?” 

Luke turned around at the sound of Reggie’s voice. The first thing he noticed was the partly-confused and partly-amused expression on his friend’s face.

“Laundry?” Luke answered tentatively, turning back to where he was busy trying to shove everything into the machine.

“I can see that,” Reggie replied. “I just don’t think I’ve ever seen you do it before. You usually just sneak your clothes into me and Alex’s loads instead.” He teased, setting his own laundry basket down before walking over to where Luke was. “Are those your bedsheets?” He asked, looking at what Luke had already loaded.

“Yeah, I just thought I should wash them,” Luke shrugged. Of course, he was only doing this to try and impress Alex, but Reggie didn’t need to know that. 

“Who are you and what have you done with Luke Patterson?” Reggie asked before he laughed at Luke’s obvious confusion at the buttons on the machine. “Do you need some help?”

Luke nodded gratefully, having no idea how to operate the machine. He was just pleased he’d managed to find his way to their building’s laundry room. It was a low bar.

“So have you added the detergent?” Reggie asked.

“Detergent?” 

“Yeah, the soap stuff.”

“Doesn’t the water wash it?” Luke asked although he guessed that was a stupid question given the laugh that it got out of Reggie.

“No.” Reggie chuckled, heading over to his own basket before returning with a brightly coloured bottle. He poured some of the liquid out into the cap before tipping it into the machine. “You got anything else to go in?” He asked, shutting the lid when Luke shook his head. 

Reggie fiddled with the settings before hitting the start button. “Okay, you’ll need to come back in about an hour and a half and move it to the dryer. I can come down with you and show you how to use that too.” He added teasingly as he started to load his own washing into another machine.

“Thanks, man.” Luke smiled, grateful for his friend’s help. He waited for Reggie to finish with his laundry before they headed back up to their apartment together. They ventured inside, finding Alex in the kitchen making himself a sandwich.

“Hey Alex, you’ll never guess what I just found Luke doing.” Reggie grinned as he leant against the countertop. Luke felt his cheeks go pink, knowing there was no way Alex wouldn’t connect the dots of why he was washing his sheets - especially after what Alex had said to him the night of their first hook up. 

“Oh god, what?” Alex asked, looking up at the two of them. “If it’s illegal then I don’t want to know.” 

“Laundry!” Reggie answered. “He was even washing his sheets.” 

Luke enjoyed the look on Alex’s face, which seemed to be bewilderment with a hint of intrigue. He noticed that Reggie had his back to him and took the opportunity to playfully wink at Alex. 

“So you totally owe me ten bucks,” Reggie continued.

“Hey!” Luke interrupted. “You guys were betting on me?”

“Yeah.” Alex nodded, chuckling as he reached into his pocket and passed over the money to Reggie. 

“It was whether you’d actually ever do laundry whilst we lived here.” Reggie laughed, happily taking the money. 

“Nice,” Luke commented sarcastically, sulking even if he knew they had a point. It wasn’t like he could really defend himself when Reggie had to help him with the machine in the first place.

Luke was more than happy to call it even though, after Alex broke his own rules and made it up to him later with a quick handjob whilst Reggie was in the shower. 

**-x-**

It had been two and a half weeks since their first kiss and things were still heating up between Alex and Luke. Luke struggled with keeping his hands off Alex, the two of them still avoiding telling Reggie for the time being.

But waiting for Reggie to go to work was turning out to be torture when they both wanted nothing more than to tear each other’s clothes off. So that was why they had decided to sneak out of the apartment to go make out in the back of Alex’s car.

It was an old Toyota 4Runner that Alex’s parents had given him for his eighteenth birthday. Luke had always been grateful that it was an SUV with lots of room for transporting band instruments. But now he appreciated the space for a whole new reason since it had enough room for them to fool around in. He was also grateful that the car’s previous owner had taken it upon themselves to darken the windows so they had some form of privacy.

They were in the trunk space, Luke lying on top of Alex as they made out. They had already ditched their shirts and their jeans had been shoved halfway down their legs as they grabbed and pulled at each other. Luke had just slipped his tongue into Alex’s mouth when the car’s locking system beeped.

“Was that you?” Luke asked, wondering if Alex had leant on his keys.

“No.” Alex frowned, the keys sitting to the side of him.

“Reggie.” They gasped simultaneously as they heard the driver’s door open. Luke dived down, pressing himself further into Alex as he tried to hide from view. 

They stared at each other in silent horror as Reggie started the engine and pulled away from their apartment complex.

“Come on Reginald. It’s just a date, you can do this. You’re a catch.” They heard Reggie telling himself, and Luke had to bite Alex’s shoulder to stop himself from laughing.

Reggie turned the radio on a moment later. Luke heard the static as Reggie changed the station, raising an eyebrow as he skipped straight past the rock station to go for the pop one instead. Reggie then turned the volume right up, singing along as he drove towards wherever it was that he was going.

“He told me he didn’t like this song when I tried to get him to listen to it.” Alex hissed under his breath as the two of them listened to Reggie singing along to Wilson Phillips’  _ Hold On.  _

“Not important right now,” Luke whispered back, glad that Reggie had turned up the music loud enough that he wouldn’t be able to hear them.

“Do you know where he’s going on his date?” Luke asked quietly. 

Alex shook his head, so they’d just have to hope that it was going to be somewhere easy for them to escape from, and somewhere that wasn’t too far from the apartment. 

The two of them lay there quietly, half-naked, for about twenty minutes before they felt the car slowing down and coming to a stop. Once the driver’s door had opened and closed, Luke allowed himself to peek out the window.

“Okay we’re in a residential street, he must be picking her up,” Luke explained before ducking back down. He rolled off of Alex whilst they had the chance to move, the two of them now lying side by side. It was cramped so they were still curled into each other.

“You really need to get those spare keys back,” Luke commented wryly. Alex just rolled his eyes, staying quiet since they heard footsteps approaching the car. The front passenger door opened, shortly followed by the driver's door. 

This time Reggie wasn’t alone, which meant the radio had been turned down in favour of Reggie making conversation. 

“Kayla?” Luke mouthed at Alex, watching as the blond nodded. Kayla was a girl that Reggie worked with, and he’d been talking about her pretty much non-stop since he started his job. 

“We could just tell Reg we’re here,” Luke suggested once the car was on the move again.

“No, he can’t find out about us like this,” Alex replied. “It’s just embarrassing and I don’t want to ruin anything.” 

"At least it would be a fun story to tell.” Luke chuckled quietly.

“No, Luke. We are never telling this story.” Alex replied, clearly trying to sound serious even if Luke could see a faint smile trying to find its way through.

It was another ten minutes or so before the car seemed to slow down, making a final turn before Reggie killed the engine.

Luke held his breath as the two front doors opened and then closed again. The locking mechanism beeped and the two were alone again. 

“We gotta stay still until Reggie’s out of sight.” Alex insisted. “Otherwise we’ll set the alarm off and he’ll come and investigate.” It wasn’t exactly simple since they didn’t know where they were, or how far Reggie had gone from the car yet.

After another few minutes of staying as still as possible, they deemed it safe to move. Alex hit the unlock button on his own keys, disabling the alarm. Both of them raced to pull their pants up, reaching for their shirts next.

A quick glance outside the window showed that they were at the local mini-mall, the one with a movie theater, which is likely where Reggie had gone. Alex climbed over into the backseats, quickly followed by Luke. 

They both dived out of the car, Alex locking the car again behind them. The two of them looked at each other for a moment before they burst out laughing, sprinting down the sidewalk away from the car, away from Reggie and away from everything that had just happened. 

They made it a few blocks before they found a 7/11 with a payphone, using it to call themselves a cab. After a quick trip inside to buy some candy, they headed back home to make use of the empty apartment whilst they could. 

**-x-**

After the events of Reggie’s date night, Alex made the executive decision for them that they couldn’t make out in the car anymore. It was too high risk, so they were back to just having the apartment whenever they were by themselves. However, it only took a few more days for the “Reggie has to be out” rule to fall.

To Luke’s surprise, it was Alex who broke it first.

Luke was lying in bed, flicking through last month’s NME magazine. It was late, the clock on his bedside table telling him it was almost 1am. He reached the end of the magazine, deciding to try and sleep since he had work the next day. 

He turned off the lamp, settling down under the covers as he got comfortable. He was only there for a few minutes before he heard his bedroom door creak. A few seconds later and he felt his bed dip as someone climbed on top of him.

“Alex?” He mumbled, even if it was a pointless question. There’s no way Reggie would have come in without saying anything, let alone straight up joined him in his bed without an explanation first.

Alex answered by pressing his lips against Luke’s. Luke responded hungrily, taking whatever Alex was willing to give him. 

“What’s going on?” Luke asked quietly as Alex slipped under the covers and started working Luke’s pyjama pants down his legs.

“I was in my room thinking about you,” Alex whispered back. “I just wanted you really badly, and you were right here so-” He explained, pressing kisses along Luke’s neck. “But you have to be quiet, if you wake Reggie up then I will kill you.” 

Luke couldn’t help but grin, the idea that Alex had been sitting alone in his room and had been turned on enough just by the thought of Luke that he had to seek him out, well Luke found that very flattering and ego-boosting. 

“The ol’ irresistible Patterson charm strikes again.” Luke teased. “Works ev-” 

Alex shut him up by kissing him, a tactic which was more than fine with him. He lost his train of thought, making no attempts to find it again as he allowed himself to get lost in the moment, to get lost in Alex. They hadn’t discussed feelings since they started doing this, but Luke knew he had it  _ bad  _ for Alex. His thoughts had never been so consumed by a single person before. Most days, not even music seemed to be able to shift the blond from his mind. 

If you’d asked him to describe his ideal partner six months ago, he probably would have described a slim brunette girl, nice boobs, good taste in music, probably somewhere around the 5’3” mark so she could wear heels if she wanted without towering over him. He certainly wouldn’t have described a near-enough 6’0 blonde with muscled arms, toned abs and a dick. Not to mention the biting sarcasm and endless eye-rolling. 

At first thinking about Alex like that had been weird, but Luke had slowly adjusted to the idea and had come to accept that he found Alex attractive. He still liked girls, but he could also appreciate the strong jawline and the muscles. Not to mention the wicked smile and pretty eyes. Alex was gorgeous and Luke was happy to fight anyone that said otherwise.

Not only was Alex hot, but he was also one of Luke’s oldest and best friends. The two had met the freshman year of high school. Alex had commented on the Rush poster that Luke had pinned up inside his locker and that was that. Alex had been there for him ever since. He was there for him through all the Patterson family fights, he was there bringing Luke food and clothes when he decided to run away, and he was there to convince Luke to go home to Emily after nearly a month of living in the studio.

Alex knew him inside and out and still loved him anyway. That was huge. There was no hiding from him. It wasn’t like when he dated a girl and he pretended to hide all his flaws for the first three months, there was no bullshitting. He was Luke and Alex was Alex. It was just the two of them. Luke and Alex. Alex and Luke. Like it always had been. Luke didn’t know what to do with all these feelings, so he simply poured them into their kiss, hoping Alex would get the message without him having to say any of it out loud just yet.

**-x-**

Luke was sitting in the living room, half-watching television when Reggie joined him on the couch.

“Hey man, is Alex seeing someone?” Reggie asked in hushed tones.

“What?” Luke asked, his brain already trying to guess at what Reggie did or didn’t know. “I don’t know, he hasn’t said anything. Why?”

“I was up late last night talking to Kayla, and when I went to bed, I thought I heard noises coming from his room,” Reggie explained. “You know, sex noises. Moaning and stuff.”

“Oh.” Luke coughed, hoping that his face wasn’t as red as it felt. Alex always told him to be quiet but sometimes he struggled. It wasn’t his fault Alex was so damn good in bed. “Are you sure, Reg? I didn’t hear anything.” He felt bad for gaslighting Reggie but he also knew Alex would kill him if he let anything slip without talking to him first.

“You’re just a heavy sleeper. I mean you’ve fallen asleep at the movie theater before, who does that?” Reggie countered, and well Luke wasn’t going to argue with that. 

“You’re right Reg.” He conceded, smiling at the grin that got from his friend. “So who do you think he’s fucking?”

“Classy, Luke.” Reggie snorted in response. “I don’t know, maybe a guy he met at a gig? Or that cute teacher guy he met through tutoring?” He suggested. Luke liked that Reggie clearly had no suspicions when it came to Luke being the one in Alex’s bedroom, although he did feel a twinge of jealousy at the idea of Alex being with the other guys that Reggie mentioned.

“Maybe, why don’t we just ask him?” Luke shrugged as Alex walked into the room.

“What are you two whispering about?” Alex frowned, looking between his two friends. 

“Reggie wanted to know if you’re sleeping with anyone,” Luke explained, enjoying the look of shock that passed over Alex’s face. Reggie had also gone pink at the implication he’d been talking about Alex’s sex life. “He heard you entertaining someone in your room last night.”

Alex had now gone bright red, surpassing even Reggie’s blush.

“Why wouldn’t you tell us, Alex?” Reggie asked, hooking an arm around Luke’s shoulder as he sat up straighter. “Do you not trust us?”

“Yeah Alex, why wouldn’t you tell us?” Luke repeated, knowing Alex was going to get back at him later for this. It was so worth it though, plus he needed to keep up appearances for Reggie’s sake. It would be out of character for him to  _ not  _ tease Alex about this. 

“You know Luke, I think I heard something the other night too,” Reggie added. “I think he’s got a secret boyfriend he hasn’t told us about.” 

Luke gasped, looking back at Alex. “How could you, Mercer? I thought we were all best friends, and you’ve got a secret boyfriend?”

If looks could kill, Luke knew he would have been long dead by now. Cause of death? Eviscerated by Alex’s glare. 

“Fine, I am seeing someone,” Alex admitted, probably because there was no way out given that Reggie had actually heard them. “But I am not giving you any details because you two are assholes, and you’ll definitely ruin it.” He added, spinning on his heel before storming back to his room.

“Knew it,” Reggie commented.

“Yeah, you did Reg.” Luke smiled, holding his hand out for Reggie to high-five. He knew Alex was mad, but he figured it was nothing a blowjob or two couldn’t fix later on. 

**-x-**

Alex was mad at him for a few days, refusing to do anything since Reggie was already suspicious. It was the fourth night of Luke trying to sneak into Alex’s room that the blond finally relented and didn’t kick him out. 

After that, it returned to business as usual with the pair of them taking it in turns to sneak into the other’s room, and using every opportunity of Reggie being out of the apartment to hook up. 

Luke had never had Wednesday afternoon sex before, but Reggie had a rare lunchtime shift and who were they to turn down a free apartment? They’d used Luke’s room this time. But apparently, he was more tired than he realised, pulling his clothes on afterwards before falling back into his bed and promptly falling asleep next to Alex.

The next thing he heard was Reggie clearing his throat, and Luke blinked his eyes open to see their friend standing at the end of the bed.

“Shit, Reggie.” Luke stuttered, hitting Alex’s arm under the covers to wake him up. He definitely didn’t want to field this one alone. “When did you get home?” He asked, stealing a glance at Alex who had now woken up and was looking slightly panicked.

“My shift finished early,” Reggie explained. “But what is happening here?” He asked, raising an eyebrow as he looked between the two of them. He had obviously finished a while ago since he had already changed out of his uniform into a pair of sweatpants and a white t-shirt.

“Reg, we can expl-” Luke started saying, grateful when Reggie cut him off since he had no idea what his explanation was going to be.

“Is this what you two do when I’m busy at work? You nap together and don’t invite me?” Reggie asked.

“Yeah, we were just napping.” Alex nodded, looking over at Luke, giving him a look urging him to agree. 

“Alex came in here to talk about something and then we just fell asleep,” Luke added. He was just grateful they’d fallen asleep  _ after _ they’d put their clothes back on. The nap story may have been harder to sell if they were still in their underwear. 

“Well, guys! Naptime sounds fun, you gotta include me next time.” Reggie grinned. Before Luke or Alex could say anything else, Reggie was climbing onto the bed, inserting himself between the two of them. 

“Sure thing, Reg,” Luke mumbled, cuddling into Reggie’s shoulder as he let himself relax again. The double bed was cramped with the three of them in it, but that didn’t stop them having another nap as they all drifted off to sleep. 

**-x-**

Luke was woken by the sound of Reggie knocking on his bedroom door. The sound jolted him awake, and Alex too if the blond’s panicked face next to him was anything to go by. 

“Luke, I made breakfast!” Reggie called out. 

“Okay give me a minute,” Luke called back, hoping that Reggie didn’t open the door. It seemed he was in luck though as he heard footsteps retreating back towards the kitchen.

“Shit, that was close.” Luke breathed. “Okay I’ll go stall him and you come out in a minute.” 

He leaned over to press a good morning kiss to Alex’s lips, not missing out on that just because he needed to go see Reggie in the kitchen. Luke then flung himself out of bed, grabbed the first t-shirt he saw on the floor and pulled it over his head as he walked out of his room and towards the kitchen.

His first inkling that something was wrong was the look on Reggie’s face as he walked in. 

“What?” Luke asked, touching his neck as if he had something on it. Alex had been going at it pretty hard last night but there shouldn’t have been anything that left a mark. Alex liked to leave those around his hips instead.

“Dude, why are you wearing Alex’s shirt?” Reggie asked.

Luke looked down, realising in horror that he had picked up Alex’s t-shirt off his floor. It even had  _ Whitney  _ emblazoned across the front. There was no denying that it belonged to Alex.

“It must have gotten mixed up in the laundry.” Luke managed to come up with as an explanation. “I didn’t even realise.” Well, that part was technically true. Reggie luckily seemed to accept the story with no real questions.

“Well I’d take it off fast, you know how weird he gets about people touching his stuff.” Reggie shrugged, going back to his food preparation.

Before Luke could do or say anything, Alex appeared in the doorway. He’d obviously made a detour to his own room to get another t-shirt given that he didn’t have one of Luke’s sleeveless muscle tees on, but one of his own. Although now that Luke had thought about it, he definitely wanted to see that. He’d have to try and persuade Alex to wear one of them for him later.

“Luke, why are you wearing that?” Alex asked, putting on an annoyed tone for Reggie’s sake.

Luke had gotten to know Alex’s face intimately well over the last month and he could see the lust lingering in those pretty eyes of his. Alex wasn’t annoyed, no, Alex wanted him.

“It must have gotten mixed up in the laundry, sorry,” Luke repeated his earlier story. “I’ll take it off.” He added, reaching for the hem and starting to pull it over his head.

“No! Keep it on.” 

Luke and Reggie both looked at Alex questioningly at his outburst. 

“I mean, I would rather you had that on than you being half-naked around the food.” Alex stammered. Luke flashed him a grin, earning him a glare in return as Alex moved past him to help Reggie. 

“You know what? I think this t-shirt has made me feel closer to Whitney.” Luke commented, an idea on how to push Alex’s buttons even further forming in his mind. “I think I might even be a fan now.” He teased. “Maybe we should do a Sunset Curve Whitney cover.”

“How about the one that goes…  _ There’s a boy I know, he’s the one I dream of?”  _ Luke started to sing, watching as Alex’s eyes widened.

“I can’t believe you even know any Whitney lyrics.” Reggie laughed, looking at Luke in surprise.

“Luke, don’t carry on,” Alex asked pleadingly. 

“ _ Looks into my eyes, he takes me to the clouds above. _ ” Luke carried on, backing away as Alex started to move towards him.

“Stop Luke, stop ruining Whitney for me.” 

“ _ Oh, I lose control. Can’t seem to get enough. When I wake from dreaming-”  _ He was cut off by Alex tackling him onto the couch. Luke had a feeling it was because the rest of the lyrics were about to get serious, and Alex didn’t want to hear the ‘L’ word falling off his lips just yet, even if it was just as a joke. 

‘You’re such a dick.” Alex murmured, pinning Luke down and shoving a throw pillow at him. 

“You just want my dick,” Luke whispered, retaliating as the two of them started to wrestle on the couch.

“You two are ridiculous.” Reggie sighed, carrying the plates over before sitting down between Alex and Luke, forcing them to separate. 

“Besides if we’re going to do a Whitney cover then I want a country cover too. Oh maybe we could do Boot Scootin’ Boogie or Chattahoochee,” Reggie added, to groans from both the other boys. 

**-x-**

“Hey, Alex?” Luke asked, staring at Alex’s ceiling as they lay naked in bed together. 

“Mhmm?” Alex responded, turning on his side to look at Luke.

“This is real for you, right?” He replied, thinking back to their first conversation about their arrangement. That had been nearly eight weeks ago but they hadn’t really discussed it much since. About what they were or how they felt. 

Alex paused for a second before answering. “Yeah, it’s real.” He nodded slowly, and Luke was extremely grateful that they were on the same page.

“So are we like, boyfriends?” Luke asked curiously.

“Don’t boyfriends go on dates? We’ve never done that.” Alex laughed. He had a point, they’d mostly just kept hanging out with each other like they usually did but just added sex in on top. They’d never gone out together, just the two of them, too afraid of being caught by someone they knew.

“True.” Luke nodded. He paused for a moment before speaking again. “Will you go on a date with me?” 

“You want to go on a date?” Alex asked apprehensively. There was a shy smile playing on his lips and a faint blush began to appear.

“Yeah, I want to date the hell out of you Alex Mercer.” Luke grinned. 

“You’re an idiot.”

“Is that a yes?” 

“Yes, that’s a yes.” Alex smiled, leaning in to kiss Luke. 

“Good, because I really like you, Alex.” Luke smiled. Frankly, he suspected he was already in love with him. But Luke kept that particular thought to himself, that was something he didn’t think Alex was ready to hear just yet. 

“I really like you too.” Alex agreed. “This means we have to tell Reggie though.” He added.

“We’ll tell him the next time we see him.” Luke smiled. If telling Reggie was the only barrier left between him and being able to be with Alex without sneaking around then he’d go call him right now. 

“But first, I’d like to celebrate this whole boyfriends thing.” Luke grinned, rolling over and hovering above Alex. He leaned down to press kisses to his neck before trailing them down his  _ boyfriend’s  _ body. He settled between Alex’s legs, ducking his head down as his mouth got to work.

“Alex? Luke?” Reggie’s voice floated through the apartment.

It made Alex jump, causing Luke to gag as Alex’s cock hit the back of his throat with his sudden movements.

“Sorry,” Alex whispered, and Luke pulled off since he figured they weren’t going to be left alone for much longer. “What’s he doing here? I thought he had work.” Alex hissed, his stress levels evident in his tone. “You have to hide.”

“What? Why? I thought we were telling him.” Luke replied, frowning at Alex’s panic.

“Yes, we are telling him. But we are going to tell him when we are dressed, in a public space and when we’ve rehearsed what we’re going to say.” Alex replied, talking quicker and quicker. “We are not telling him when we’re both butt naked and were in the middle of this. So hide.” He insisted, shoving at Luke’s shoulder.

“Luke?” Reggie’s voice floated down the hall, the sound of him knocking on Luke’s door audible.

Luke held up his hands in defeat, heading for Alex’s closet since it wasn’t like he could just step into the hallway. There was no other way out and he didn’t want to hide under the bedsheets again. He figured they’d only get away with that once. He stepped into the closet, pulling the door shut behind him just as there was a knock on Alex’s bedroom door.

“Alex?”

“Two seconds,” Alex replied, grabbing all of their clothes off the floor and shoving them under the blanket next to him. He dived back under the covers, pulling a pair of sweats on in case Reggie decided to get in his bed again. He was definitely still half-hard from Luke’s efforts, and the sweatpants weren’t hiding that, so he just hoped that Reggie would keep his distance today.

“Yeah, Reg? You can come in,” Alex called when he was done, trying to look casual when Reggie opened the door, and not like he’d just had sex and had been about to go for a round two with his new boyfriend.

“Have you seen Luke? He’s not in his room and I didn’t think he had work today.” Reggie frowned as he stepped into the room, perching himself down at the end of Alex’s bed.

“No, no I haven’t seen Luke.” Alex lied. “He probably just went to the park to write songs or something.”

“Maybe, although his guitar is in the living room and I’ve never seen him write a song without that thing.” Reggie chuckled.

“Oh, right.” Alex nodded. “So maybe he’s somewhere else. Sorry I can’t help you, man.” 

“Are you alright?” Reggie frowned, studying Alex carefully. “You seem kind of flustered.”

“What? No, I’m fine.” Alex laughed, although even he could hear how fake it was.

Luke was trying his best to stay quiet, but it was cramped in the closet and he was naked which made it all the more uncomfortable as things jabbed into his legs and back. Something tickled his nose and he knew he was done for. He tried to stop it but before he could, he sneezed loudly.

He could hear the silence on the other side of the door, and he knew they were busted.

“Alex, don’t be scared - but I think there’s someone in here.” It was Reggie’s voice, he sounded somewhere between cautious and fearful. 

“No, I think you’re just hearing things, Reg.” Alex pleaded. “Let’s go find Luke, okay?”

“No, I definitely heard it,” Reggie repeated, getting up from the bed. “It’s fine, I’ll protect you, Alex.” 

“Reggie, it’s fine, there’s no-one there.” 

Luke heard the footsteps coming towards the closet door. He made sure to cover his dick as best he could with his hands. He held his breath, counting down the seconds before he heard the door creak and the light of the room hit his face.

“Heeeey Reg.” Luke smiled awkwardly at Reggie’s dumbstruck face. “Guess you found me, huh?” He added, looking past Reggie to see Alex sitting on the bed holding his head in his hands. 

“Luke? Why are you naked in Alex’s closet?” Reggie asked after a few seconds of just staring at Luke silently. “Are you being creepy? I never took you for the pervert type.”

“No! I’m not a pervert.” Luke insisted. “Although I wish I was a bit less naked.” He added as a hint, staring firmly at Alex.

“Here you go.” Alex sighed, reaching under the blanket next to him before throwing Luke’s boxers and pants at him. Reggie at least had the good grace to turn around whilst Luke put them on. 

“Did you know he was in there?” Reggie questioned Alex, Alex silently nodding in response.

“Wait, were you two, doing… stuff?” Reggie asked next, looking between them. Luke nodded that time, figuring that much was probably obvious from the fact they were both half-naked and were both blushing badly.

“Are you cheating on your secret boyfriend with  _ Luke?”  _ Reggie asked wide-eyed as he took in both of their appearances again. Luke couldn’t help but laugh, but Alex just glared at him.

“No Reggie.” Alex sighed. “Luke  _ is _ the secret boyfriend.” 

“But… but I heard that like a month ago.” Reggie stuttered, the pieces clearly falling into place for him. “How long exactly have you two been doing it?” He asked.

“Since that night at the bar, when the douchebag was hitting on Alex,” Luke answered. 

“That was so long ago!” Reggie gasped. “I can’t believe you guys kept this from me for like two whole months.” He sulked, turning on his heel and leaving Alex’s room.

“Reggie, wait!” Alex called out but the other boy kept walking.

“This is a fucking disaster.” Alex groaned, reaching for his shirt.

“It’ll be fine, it’s Reg. He’ll come around.” Luke shrugged, collecting his own shirt and pulling it back on.

“You better hope he does because otherwise, I’m dumping your ass.” Alex shot back. “Bros before hoes.” He added sarcastically.

“Reggie, wait up!” Luke called after his friend, the threat of being dumped scaring him into action. He raced into the hall, checking Reggie’s room before finding him in the living room.

“Reggie, I’m sorry we didn’t tell you.” Luke apologised sincerely, sitting down next to Reggie on the couch. 

“Why didn’t you tell me though?” Reggie asked, fixing Luke with a pointed look. He looked hurt, and Luke just wanted to take it all back and make it better. “You’d rather hide in a closet than talk to me.”

“It wasn’t about you,” Luke explained honestly, watching as Alex appeared and sat down on the other side of Reggie. 

“Yeah, it was about us,” Alex confirmed. “We didn’t know what we were and we didn’t want to risk ruining any of our friendships if it wasn’t going to work out between us.” 

“But it has… worked out?” Reggie frowned, looking between the two of them again.

“Yeah.” Luke nodded. “But I promise you, we only talked about it today and we were going to tell you, Reg.” 

“Yeah, we just wanted to be wearing clothes when we did it,” Alex confirmed.

“God I wish you’d been wearing clothes.” Reggie laughed, the tension beginning to dissipate. “So are you two boyfriends?” He asked tentatively.

“As of twenty minutes ago, yeah.” Alex chuckled.

“Oh, okay.” Reggie nodded, processing that information. “I mean, that’s cool! It means you can double date with me and Kayla.” He grinned, already moving from the earlier weirdness.

“That sounds great.” Luke smiled sincerely. He might not have always found the idea of a double date exciting, but the prospect of getting to hang out with his two best friends all night  _ and  _ kiss Alex whilst he did it? Well that sounded perfect. 

“Do you have any other questions?” Luke asked.

“Yeah, you can ask us anything.” Alex nodded.

“Just the one.” Reggie paused before continuing. “Can we watch Star Wars tonight? I think you guys owe me. Oh! And I want that country cover, it’s the least you lying dumbasses can do.” He grinned.

**-x-**

**Author's Note:**

> If they seemed familiar to you, the car scene was totally borrowed from New Girl ala Cece and Schmidt, and the Luke hiding under the covers one was inspired by a Chuck and Blair scene in Gossip Girl. Thought I might as well cite my sources haha.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
